Safe and Sound
by bandgeek18
Summary: Green Arrow is injured after Speedy runs headfirst into a dangerous situation. One-shot.


A/N: Hello everyone! I've had this sitting on my laptop for a while and I realized it's been a while since I've posted a nice, angsty Ollie and Roy fic. Graphic desriptions of violence and blood ahead. So...Enjoy!

"Speedy, wait!" Green Arrow sighed as he watched his young partner run toward a very suspicious-looking warehouse. In all the archer's years of being a vigilante, nothing good ever happened in one of those. Especially when you find a suspicious trail of bodies in Star leading you to the said warehouse. All of that seemed lost on his overeager partner though. The teen ran toward the warehouse without any caution. Unfortunately, Green Arrow knew he couldn't let Speedy go in alone, so he followed. The younger archer easily climbed a pile of study crates outside the building and slipped in through a window just under the lip of the roof. 'Damn kid…' Green Arrow crawled through the window as well, landing on a catwalk just under it almost silently. "Speedy?"

"GA, down here," Speedy replied.

Green Arrow looked over the railing and saw his partner was already on the ground level. He sighed as he walked carefully down the stairs. "See anything?"

"No."

"Hmm…. I thought for sure-" The lights suddenly turned on and in an instant, he had an arrow on his bowstring. He instinctively moved so he was back-to-back with Speedy. "Knew it." Something moved in the corner of Green Arrow's eye, so he stepped back, forcing Speedy backward. The irritation from the younger archer was palpable, but Green Arrow ignored it. He fired back and had anther arrow ready on his bowstring by the time another arrow shot at them. This time he was able to see that the arrow was black. "Damn it…" He shot another arrow in the direction of the arrows were coming from. "Show yourself, Merlyn!"

"Certainly took you long enough to figure it out…" Merlyn said as he moved from a shadow by the large pile of boxes. "But I guess brains and archery skills are too much to ask for, hm?"

"Why don't you come a little closer and we'll find out?" There was a flash of red from the corner of Green Arrow's eye. Fear shot through his heart. "Speedy, no!" The younger archer didn't listen though and instead ran straight at Merlyn. Green Arrow started firing at Merlyn as fast as he could, trying to pull his aim away from Speedy. Unfortunately, an arrow still hit Speedy, glancing off his face.

"Ah!" he gasped, stumbling. A sharp pain cut across his face and he stopped for a moment. Unfortunately, that moment was Merlyn needed. The villain took aim at the injured teen and fired. Speedy looked up just as he saw the flash of the arrow in the air, then found himself on the ground. In the span of a blink, he saw blood and a huddled green figure. It took a few seconds too long for his brain to figure out what was happening. "GA…"

"Speedy…" Green Arrow grit his teeth, trying to ignore the horrible pain stabbing at his body. He looked down and almost groaned. The black arrow was nowhere to be seen, just an entrance wound on his upper arm. He stumbled would've fallen on his knees if it wasn't for Speedy catching him. Green Arrow tried to move his arm, but doing caused his vision to go black from pain and blood gushed down his arm from the entrance and exit wounds. His arm was already soaked and dizziness was pricking at the edges of his consciousness. "Speedy…" he gasped as he used his good arm to keep himself kneeling upright. "Run…"

"What? No! I'm not- I'm not leaving you here!"

"You…have to… Listen." Vertigo almost took him down when Green Arrow moved his hand, but he caught Speedy's shoulder and used the teen to keep himself upright. "Go… Call…Green Lantern… Tell him what happened… I'll hold...Merlyn off…"

"But-"

"Go!"

Speedy hesitated, then nodded. "O- Ok…" He stood but hesitated for a moment when Green Arrow seemed to sway. 'Go get back up. We need back up.' So he started leaving, but only got several feet before he stooped again. As if against his will, he looked back. Despite bleeding a lot (and it was a lot where was all that blood coming from?!) Green Arrow had his bow in his other hand as his adversary approached him. Merlyn was focused entirely on his injured prey, giving Speedy the perfect opportunity to escape. Dread gripped his body, not allowing Speedy to look away. 'He can't shoot,' the younger archer thought worriedly. 'He can barely even sit up!' A small part of his brain noted that wooziness after blood loss for this short amount of time was a very bad sign, but the much larger part was focused on how Green Arrow was about to die in front of him. Then, as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he acted.

His hand jumped to his quiver almost of his own accord and shot an arrow. It hit it's intended target (a box near Merlyn's head to get his attention) then fired another. As soon as he fired he took cover behind a nearby crate. It was a good thing too because no sooner had he ducked back there that three successive thuds hit the other side. Speedy flinched a little, but nocked another arrow to his bowstring and ran. He jumped over a box, then leaped onto another.

Using boxes and crates as stairs, he jumped his way higher and higher, only stopping for a second to keep shooting arrows. He kept watch on Merlyn from the corner of his eye and, as he'd hoped, the man was now a good ten feet from Green Arrow with all his attention focused on stopping the smaller archer. 'Good,' Speedy thought as he fired another arrow and jumped to a new crate. 'I can't keep running around like this though. I need a plan.' And a good one. Fast.

An arrow whizzed by Speedy's head and he growled. 'Come on, Harper, think! Ollie's counting on you!' He looked around and spotted a hole in the ceiling. 'Hmmm...' A plan formed in his mind and a smile spread across his face. 'I've got it!' Speedy stopped at the next crate and shot an arrow. "Too tired to keep up?" he asked mockingly.

"Your false sense of bravado will do you no good," Merlyn replied as he walked closer. "Stop running and I'll make this quick."

"You? Kill me? As if! You're like the tutorial level of a video game!" An arrow shot past his shoulder, but he kept running, using the cries and boxes to get across the warehouse.

"You're making this harder on yourself than it has to be. Just accept your defeat at the hands of a superior archer-" Merlyn sidestepped an arrow that shot at him, then winced as another one he hadn't seen skimmed his arm.

"Yawn!" Speedy shot an electroshock arrow at Merlyn. It missed, but the man climbed on a crate to reach him, so he sighed audibly. "Is there a way I can skip the monologue tonight?" He quickly climbed to a superior vantage point and knelt down on one knee. Moving more on instinct, the teen fired arrow after arrow at Merlyn as fast as he could. The arrows forced the man to move from side to side erratically to avoid them. The smile on Speedy's face only grew when he discovered his attack was having the desired effect. Merlyn was clearly angry and determined to get him. 'Come and get me.' Speedy kept going, climbing higher and higher until he got closer to the ceiling.

"Get down here, you cretin!"

"If you're so good, then come get me!" Speedy ducked behind and waited until he heard a thud! before he poked his head back out. "Or are you worried about losing to a kid?"

"I'd never lose to a child!"

"Then come up here and prove it!" When he got close to the ceiling, he stopped and sat casually on top of a crate. "You know, you so desperately want to be Star's version of the Joker when you're more like…Calendar Man. It's kind of funny. I admire your determination."

"Shut up!"

"Don't hate me because I'm right!" Speedy waited until Merlyn was so close he almost grabbed the teen before he moved. The younger archer somersaulted backward, then stood and hauled himself through the hole. It was dark and silent as he climbed onto the roof. 'So close, so close, so-' Before Speedy could figure out the next part of his plan, something snagged the collar of his shirt. In the blink of an eye, the teen found himself pinned to the metal wall of some kind of AC unit. His eyes widened under his mask and he tugged futilely at the projectile.

"There's no use running, boy…" Merlyn snarled as he stalked closer. "Just give up and accept your fate."

'Not on your life, goth!' Speedy thought irritably, still pulling at the arrow. 'I can't get it! I can't grab it from the right angle!' He was so focused on trying to pull out the arrow that Speedy was surprised when Merlyn twisted him around. He grunted as his shirt tore a little bit. Speedy jerked to the side a little bit and his heart stopped when he realized he had some wiggle room. 'But Merlyn's ugly face is an inch from me….' It looked like he'd have to get creative. Speedy glared defiantly the man. "Ooo, you caught a kid more than half your age. Bet that makes you feel like a man."

"You're nothing but an annoying mite. At least the Green Idiot provides a challenge. As pitiful as it is."

Speedy's glare intensified at the crack at his mentor. "Is that why he kicked your ass from here to Central last time you were here?" The punch hurt as much as he'd expected, but it gave him an excuse to drop. Like a bag of potatoes, Speedy fell to the roof. His shirt ripped more, freeing him from the arrow. One the ground, Speedy kicked up at Merlyn's knee as hard as he could.

"Ah!"

As soon as Merlyn pulled his knee back, Speedy popped up and punched him in the gut. He ran around Merlyn toward the edge of the roof. 'Maybe I can lead him way from Ollie and call for backup-' The wind was knocked out of him when Merlyn tackled him from behind. Speedy growled as a hand settled over his mouth. He mercilessly dug his teeth into the calloused flesh of Merlyn's hand. The man shouted in pain, but Speedy kept biting him. The weight on top of him shifted, allowing the teen to wiggle out as he released Merlyn.

"Stupid kid!"

"That's me." Speedy pulled an arrow from his quiver and shot. The electroshock arrow hit Merlyn in the shoulder and stunned him. Before the man could recover, the younger archer ran at him. He shoved Merlyn off the roof. As soon as the man went over the edge, Speedy poked his head out to watch. A snicker escaped his lips as the villain fell into a dumpster out. Before he could climb out, Speedy took an arrow out of his quiver, then nocked it to his string so he could angle it just right. The arrow pierced the lid of the dumpster and allowed the momentum to close the lid. Seedy allowed himself one moment to smirk at the dumpster before he remembered Green Arrow and ran back toward the hole. As fast as he could, he lowered himself back inside the warehouse. "GA!" he called when he made it back to the ground. "GA!" Speedy wove between boxes and crates, back to his mentor.

When he reached Green Arrow, the first thing he noticed was the blood. It was everywhere. A dark red puddle soaked the cement under Green Arrow's upper body. It was like a punch to the gut, but Speedy forced himself to keep moving. He dropped to his knees next to his mentor and froze for a moment. "Green Arrow?" he asked quietly, voice shaking. "Arrow… Merlyn's gone. We can leave now. Come on." He shook his mentor, but Green Arrow didn't react. "C'mon GA! C'mon!" Heart beating erratically, Speedy tugged his gloves to feel Green Arrow's pulse. Relief flooded the teen when he felt the thready beat beneath his fingertips. "Ok... Ok...he's alive. Uh…backup. I need backup." Hopefully, he could reach someone. He put his hand on his comm, desperately hoping with every cell and fiber of his being, that help would come. "Green Lantern?"

"Huh?" was the intelligent response he got, but it still gave him relief.

"GL! I need help!"

"Speedy?" Hal sounded much more alert now. He must've been napping or something. "What's going on? Where's Green Arrow?"

"He's hurt. Like…really hurt. He was shot in the arm with an arrow and there's so much blood!"

"Shit! Ok, kid, stay calm. Where are you? Are you in the open?"

"No, we're in a warehouse."

"Where?"

"I- uh…" Speedy tried to remember where in Star City they where, but the blood in front of him made that impossible. It was sticking out in his head. Nothing mattered more than the blood (too much, way too much blood) coming from the wound.

"Ring, locate Oliver Queen." There was a short pause. "Ok, I've got your location. Is he awake?"

"No, I can't wake him up! He's so pale and his pulse is really slow."

"…Fuck. Ok, Speedy, I'm on my way, but I need you to make a tourniquet to stop the bleeding."

"A- A tourniquet? But…I don't know how!"

"I can walk you through it. You need some rope and something straight like an arrow."

"O…Ok…" Speedy looked around, but there was nothing. 'Well… It isn't like Ollie really needs his shirt right now.' Figuring being shirtless was the least of his mentor's worries at the moment, the teen gripped the hem of his shirt and started tearing. When he had a strip of cloth long enough, he nodded to himself, then followed the instructions coming in through his ear. It was hard to tie the cloth on Green Arrow's arm with his hands shaking, but Speedy kept trying. He was forced to take his gloves off in frustration before he could get it. Unfortunately, he also couldn't tie the cloth without getting blood on his hands. The liquid covered his palms as his fingers struggled to finish the square knot. When it was done, there was a brief moment of relief, then he moved on to the next step to give himself something to take his mind off the blood. It worked too well though because the next step made him pause. "I- I have to tighten it more?"

"Yes. You need to tighten it as much as possible to stop the bleeding."

"But-"

"Speedy, don't! If you don't do this, Green Arrow will die. Tighten it."

It was uncharacteristically harsh of Green Lantern, but Speedy wasn't in the right kind of headspace to be aware of it. Swallowing bile that threatened to rise in his throat, he pulled an arrow from his quiver and stuck it through the cloth as he'd been instructed. Then he twisted it. The sight of Green Arrow's skin under the pressure of the tourniquet made him queasy. It felt wrong to be doing this. Like he was doing more damage than helping. 'I don't want Ollie to die though! He's already dying because of me! I have to save him!' Scared out of his mind, Speedy tightened the tourniquet like he'd been told, then secured it to Green Arrow's arm. The man didn't so much as twitch during the whole thing. "Ok, it's done."

"Ring, time." There was a pause. "I need you to write 11:45 somewhere on his arm. Somewhere noticeable."

"Why?"

"Because it can't be left on for too long."

"I don't have anything to write with."

"Is there blood on your hands?"

Speedy swallowed as he glanced down at his red hands. His gut twisted as his mind jumped to what Green Lantern would probably say next. "Mhm…"

"Write it in blood." There was a pause. Then, as if assuming Speedy was hesitating, "I wouldn't tell you to do it if it wasn't critical, kid."

"O- Ok…" Teeth clenched and arms shaking, Speedy wrote the time in blood on the only clear spot on Green Arrow's body he could find. "Done…"

"Ok. Sit tight. I'll be there soon."

"Uh-huh…" Speedy sat back on his heels for a moment, just staring at Green Arrow. He looked dead already, between the waxen skin and stillness of his chest. It pushed Speedy to check his pulse again, clutching the man's uninjured arm. "I- It's gonna be ok, Ollie… G-GL is coming… It's ok now… Everything's ok…" A film of tears formed over his eyes and Speedy sniffed, trying to hold back a sob. "We- We'll fix you up and…and it'll all be better, right? You- You'll get better…" For a second he couldn't feel the pulse, making his own heart stop. He found it again half a second later and was so relieved that he burst into tears. "I'm sorry, Ollie! This is all my fault! I'm sorry! Please get better! Please! I need you! You- You can ground me forever and…and I'll make my bed and put the dishes away and do my homework and put my clothes in the hamper and…and…" He closed his eyes for a second as he swallowed. "Please, Ollie. Please. Please don't leave me too."

Unable to do anything else, Speedy laid down so his head was on Green Arrow's chest. He still had the man's arm clutched in his hands, fingertips pressed tightly against his wrist. "Please don't leave me…" he whispered as tears slipped out from under his mask. A familiar feeling of helplessness overwhelmed him. It reminded him of when he was a lot younger and he had laid on his dad's chest like this, afraid to hear him stop breathing. The soft sobs coming from him blocked the sound of Oliver's shallow breaths, but Speedy could still feel his pulse. As weak as it was. The younger archer knew he had put himself in a vulnerable position. Merlyn could come back and shoot him before he had time to react, but Speedy didn't care. The only thing that mattered was holding onto Oliver and feeling his pulse. As if the archer could keep his mentor alive through his own sheer will. "I- I need you, Ollie… Please don't go away too… Please…"

Speedy sobbed quietly as grief assaulted his heart. 'Not again. Not again. Please. God, don't make me go through this again.'


End file.
